Communication terminals may transmit and receive radio signals through space. In order to accomplish this, such terminals generally use acquisition and tracking systems to establish the radio link by pointing high gain radio antennas toward one another. For instance, a transmitting terminal may use a beacon radio signal to signal the receiving terminal, while the receiving terminal may use a radio signal strength indicator to locate the transmitting terminal. Steering mechanisms may maneuver the terminals to point their antennas towards each other and to track the antenna pointing once acquisition is established. A high degree of pointing accuracy may be required to ensure that the radio signal will be correctly received.